Five year delays hit foreign funded water schemes, Senate told

The Senate Standing Committee on Economic Affairs raised concerns over delays and procurement problems in foreign funded water

Islamabad:  The Senate Standing Committee on Economic Affairs raised concerns over delays and procurement problems in foreign funded water and wastewater projects in Punjab, including a 30 million gallons per day Faisalabad water supply scheme approved in 2019. The committee was told that procedures for some foreign funded projects have taken as long as five years, delaying services for the public.

The committee met on under the chairmanship of Senator Saifullah Abro at Parliament House, Islamabad. Senator Hidayat Ullah Khan, Senator Rubina Khalid, Senator Kamil Ali Agha and Senator Kamran Murtaza also attended the meeting. The committee reviewed foreign funded projects being carried out by the Water and Sanitation Agency (WASA) in cooperation with development partners and United Nations agencies.

The committee gave special attention to the Extension of Water Resources for Faisalabad City Phase II, which has a capacity of 30 million gallons per day. Officials told the committee that the project was approved in 2019. The committee expressed concern that delays in such development projects directly affect ordinary people because water and other public services are delayed, while costs can also increase.

The Secretary Economic Affairs Division told the committee that delays in foreign funded projects in the past were not covered by a clearly defined policy framework. As a result, projects faced lengthy procedures before moving forward. The committee was informed that the Prime Minister had formed a committee to deal with these delays and that its recommendations were almost complete. Officials said implementing those recommendations was expected to reduce delays and improve the flow of foreign funded projects.

A chronological flow chart presented to the committee showed that the full procedure for some projects had taken up to five years. The committee was also told that new projects would prepare the Detailed Engineering Design at an earlier stage and that delays in hiring consultants would be avoided under the revised process.

Senator Rubina Khalid questioned how procurement for foreign funded projects in Pakistan compared with international practices. The committee was then surprised to learn that the same foreign companies had taken part in the re tendering process for hiring a consultant, while a company that had earlier been rejected was later selected in the new process. The committee questioned why re tendering was conducted if the same company could eventually qualify and be selected.

Officials of the Punjab government were unable to properly brief the committee on the issue. The committee therefore deferred the matter and ordered the concerned Secretary and the Chairman of the Planning and Development Board Punjab to appear and provide a detailed explanation.

The committee also examined the Lahore Wastewater and Drainage Management Project. Members said important details of the project process had not been properly provided. Officials told the committee that four financial bids had been received, but three companies were disqualified because they were considered technically incompetent.

Committee Chairman Senator Saifullah Abro demanded complete details of the procurement process after officials failed to provide the required record, including information about all four participating companies. He stressed the need for complete transparency and ordered that all correspondence with the companies and the complete procurement record be submitted to the committee within three days.

The committee also raised a wider question about the reach of WASA related foreign funded water projects. Members asked whether such projects were limited to Punjab or whether similar water schemes were being carried out in other provinces. Senator Saifullah Abro particularly pointed to the water challenges faced by Balochistan.

The committee directed that the Government of Balochistan should give a briefing at its next meeting on water projects in the province, including relevant WASA related schemes and other water interventions.

The committee stressed that foreign funded water and wastewater projects must follow transparent procurement procedures and clear accountability rules. It also called for better coordination between government departments, executing agencies and development partners so that projects move from planning to implementation without unnecessary delay.

The committee further stressed that complete records on procurement decisions, bid evaluations, project progress and correspondence should be made available whenever questions arise over delays or disqualifications. It said senior officials responsible for major foreign funded projects should appear before the parliamentary forum and provide complete information so that problems can be examined and resolved.